A New Year’s Eve party in northern Italy took a shocking turn when a shot fired from a gun owned by Emanuele Pozzolo, a lawmaker from Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s far-right Brothers of Italy party, left a guest with a leg injury.
Pozzolo, 38, admitted owning the mini revolver, described as a 22-caliber North American Arms pistol, but claims he didn’t fire it himself.
According to his statement, the gun was discharged accidentally, wounding the son-in-law of a bodyguard for junior justice minister Andrea Delmastro, who was also at the party in Rosazza near Turin.
The incident, attended by around 30 guests, is under investigation, but news of the shooting sparked immediate outrage and criticism from opposition politicians.
Italy’s firearms regulations are strict, and Meloni’s party recently proposed lowering the minimum age for a hunting rifle permit to 16. This further fueled the fire, fueling accusations of hypocrisy and irresponsibility.
“We could not have imagined that the passion for weapons of Giorgia Meloni’s party was such that MPs would take them loaded to New Year’s Eve parties,” declared Elly Schlein, leader of the Democratic Party.
Former prime minister Matteo Renzi echoed the sentiment, saying, “Why bring guns to a New Year’s Eve party in the presence of MPs and members of the government?
Hours after the incident, Meloni and her party have yet to issue an official statement on the incident.
